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Mourners pack Tech after attack

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<b>Community tries to come to terms with horrific attack</b>

Maria Tchijov, Cavalier Daily Life Editor

BLACKSBURG, Va.-- In a day filled with a constant barrage of media images of the shooter who took the lives of at least three of her friends and 29 others,Behnaz Bonyadian took solace as thousands of people patiently filed into Cassell Coliseum and Lane Stadium yesterday afternoon. The convocation ceremonyincluded remarks from U.S. President George W. Bush and Gov. Tim Kaine.

It was a "massive display of respect," the Virginia Tech junior said, observing the crowd. Nearly all entering the somber event wore Hokie maroon and orange as they donned memorial ribbons. During the ceremony, various public officials including Bush and Virginia Tech President Charles Steger offered words of solace to the community.

"No words truly express the depth of sadness we feel," Steger said after he received a prolonged standing ovation. "Words are very weak symbols of our emotions at times like this."

President and Laura Bush were in attendance at the event, and Bush addressed the university on behalf of the nation.

"We&#39;ve come to express our sympathy," he said. "In this time of anguish, I hope you know that people all over this country are thinking of you and asking God to provide comfort for all who have been affected."

Throughout the southwestern Virginia campus, students, university employees and faculty members tried to comprehend the senseless tragedy.

Choices Monday morning

Senior Kate Stuck of Granby, Conn. was sitting in class in Pamplin Hall Monday morning when she heard about the situation. One of her classmates, who had a laptop, received the first e-mail sent out at 9:26 a.m.

"We knew something was going on," Stuck said.

Her fears were confirmed when her boyfriend, under lockdown in Randall Hall, called her cell phone.

Unlike Stuck, Chris Cooke learned about the shooting first-hand through the first e-mail sent out about the attacks by the administration, and he decided not to go to class. He e-mailed his professor and asked to make up the lab. He said at that point he felt his personal safety was more important then the inconvenience of an 8 a.m. Friday make-up lab.

"It kind of makes you wonder if you are safe anywhere," said Anthony Linkous, a 25-year veteran maintenance worker for Virginia Tech. He said his wife called him frantically every half-hour, begging him to come home.

Addressing the situation

Two weeks ago, Amie Steele took over as editor-in-chief of The Collegiate Times, Tech&#39;s student newspaper. On Monday, she found herself in the middle of an international media hailstorm as her phone rang off the hook.

"Breaking news isn&#39;t my forte yet," she said, explaining that she rose through the ranks on the production staff, specializing in layout and design.

During the 24 hours following the shooting, Steele managed to sleep for an hour and a half.

For her, the most overwhelming part of the experience has been the international media presence.

"We are trying to get our own stories, conduct our own interviews, and they keep on calling," she said. "It&#39;s difficult to juggle."

Overall, however, she said she feels the media has approached the issue with sensitivity and has been respectful of the personal nature of the evolving situation.

The intense media attention on the shooting has forced university administrators and police officials into the unexpected position of answering not just to their local community, but to throngs of media outlets and their readership. To resolve these concerns Gov. Time Kaine, at the request of Steger and Tech&#39;s Board of Visitors, has commissioned an independent panel to review the way the incident was handled.

"It&#39;s the most horrific thing that has ever happened," said Laurel Stell, a senior from Charlottesville. "At first everyone was angry at Steger for not locking down the campus, [but] they never meant for anyone to get hurt."

Stell noted that because the gunman lived in a dorm and thus had a dorm key, he could have easily gotten into any residential area.

While students like Stell do not assign blame to the administration, other students and media outlets have done so. Some groups and individuals focused on other issues, such as gun control, have also jumped on the issue. Gov. Tim Kaine expressed his disdain for this behavior.

"People who want to take this event 24 hours afterwards and make this their political hobbyhorse, I&#39;ve got nothing but loathing for them," Kaine said in a press conference.

What next?

After addressing the significant dislocation and emotional trauma caused by the incident, the Virginia Tech community must prepare to resume core educational operations. Yesterday administrators announced that classes would be canceled until at least Monday. Norris Hall, home of the civil engineering department, will be closed for the rest of the semester.

Christina McIntyer, a professor in the human nutrition food and exercise department, remains optimistic that the university community will emerge intact.

"We&#39;re a strong community," she said. "If anything, this will bring us closer. It&#39;ll be a day we remember."

Cooke, a civil engineering major, said in the long-term he was concerned not only about the future location of his department but about the outcome of his coursework and grades.

He said he had several exams in the next few weeks and he was not sure if they would be pushed back or canceled.

But, even in the face of uncertainty relating to his academic career, Cooke said he did not want to be "standing idly by."

He and fellow members of Pi Kappa Phi fraternity got together to donate blood yesterday to help stave off Blacksburg&#39;s severe blood shortage.

The charitable activities in which many students are engaging provide much needed hope.

But for graduating seniors, Monday&#39;s events place a permanent stain on the bright celebrations of future opportunities many had been looking forward to.

"Graduation is now more of a memorial than a celebration," said Andrew Stone, a senior from Charlotte, N.C.

Monday&#39;s events have not only left a mark on the students leaving Tech, but also on the many potential new members of the university community.

"It is going to make people think twice about coming to Tech," Linkous said. "People want to know they&#39;re safe."

One of the core challenges everyone sees in the response to the tragedy is moving forward in a manner deferential to the victims of Monday&#39;s massacre.

"We&#39;ve got to get back into it sometime," Linkous said. "But we have to remember what happened."

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How Carnegie Mellon is keeping campus safe after VA Tech massacre

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News | Sarah Mogin

Wednesday night, students and faculty gathered by the Fence. In the midst of the cold and windy weather, 70 hands cupped 70 flickering flames as the Carnegie Mellon community mourned the victims of the Virginia Tech massacre.

Last Monday, 23-year-old Virginia Tech student Seung-Hui Cho killed himself and 32 others in the deadliest shooting executed by a single person in United States history. The attacks occurred in a dormitory and an academic building, both located on the Virginia Tech campus.

The vigil by the Fence is only one example of the ways in which colleges and universities nationwide are coming together to honor those slain.

"Students totally took the lead on creating this opportunity to express themselves after the Virginia Tech shootings," said Jonathan Kroll, housefellow for Morewood Gardens. "I think it definitely helps with the grieving process."

The vigil began at 9 p.m. with a moment of silence. As the group grew in number, participants continued to light the candles of those who gathered along the periphery of the crowd.

Student Body President Karl Sjogren passed out lyrics to to "Lean on Me" and the group then joined in song. After that, students and faculty members, one of whom was an alumna of Virginia Tech, took turns speaking informally.

Two hours earlier, the Hillel Jewish University Center (JUC) of Pittsburgh hosted a vigil led by rabbi Jamie Gibson of Temple Sinai.

Gibson led those attending in song and prayer, and students read prayers as well. During the vigil, Gibson gave personal attention to each of the departed.

"We knew that we wanted to read the names of every single person whose name had been released," said Sahar Oz, the JUC&#39;s assistant director. "And we also wanted to say a few things about them."

Students lit candles for each of the known victims: Liviu Librescu, a 76-year-old Holocaust survivor; Reema Samaha, an 18-year-old first-year; Kevin Granata, a biomechanics researcher and a leader in his field; and 26 others.

The group also lit three candles for the victims whose names had not yet been released.

Oz found Librescu&#39;s death particularly troubling. Librescu, a professor at Virginia Tech, was shot while protecting his students by guarding the entrance to his classroom.

"He was murdered on Holocaust Remembrance Day, which is an occasion observed around the world," Oz said. "It sent shock and a tremendous sense of loss to the Jewish community."

The tragedy resonated in particular with several Carnegie Mellon students in the JUC who met Virginia Tech students last May while on a Birthright trip to Israel.

"One of the things we did immediately was try to reach the eight students who went on this trip from Virginia Tech," Oz said. All eight were unharmed.

"We had that added element of emotional proximity," Oz said.

The modern languages department is also making plans to reach out to Virginia Tech, in part because so many of the shootings took place in foreign-language classrooms.

"We have trained a certain number of people ... in every building," said Madelyn Miller, director of Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S) at the university.

RAs, building marshals, and other qualified individuals are among those who have received training, she said.

EH&S has had a system called AlertNow in place for the past couple of years. AlertNow enables EH&S to make 5000 phone calls in about a minute, which could help alert floor marshals of a campus emergency.

"Not everybody knows that we have these procedures in place," Miller said.

In the past, EH&S&#39;s procedures were kept online behind a firewall. The procedures were privatized because they included the cell phone numbers of various staff members, in addition to the locations of hazardous materials throughout campus.

After Virginia Tech, EH&S decided to make the procedures available to the public â€” without the information regarding cell phones or hazardous materials.

Carnegie Mellon&#39;s urban campus is an asset in the event of an emergency, Miller said. The university is within close reach of city, county, and state police.

"I think it makes us safer," she said.

Moreover, RAs are trained to recognize suspicious students, which could help prevent a future incident, Kroll said. Concern from other students is often cause for immediate action.

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UCLA Vigil

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Photo by: Jessica Lum

Students stand in De Neve Plaza on Thursday night for a vigil in memory of those who lost their lives in Monday&#39;s shootings at Virginia Tech. Speakers and students expressed sympathy for the victims&#39; families and for the university.

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Well-wishers react to Va. shooting

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By Allie Lowe, The Dartmouth Staff
April 17, 2007

Braving the rain and wind, approximately 100 members of the Dartmouth community gathered on Collis porch Monday night to recognize the individuals killed in that morning&#39;s shootings at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va.

The two shootings, the first of which occurred in a dormitory and the second in a classroom building, took place two hours apart and left 32, plus the gunman, dead. The event marks the most deadly shooting in U.S. history.

Monday night&#39;s vigil was organized by Haley Morris &#39;08 and Heather Strack &#39;07. Morris first had the idea to plan the event after receiving word of the events in an e-mail sent to her sorority, Sigma Delta.

"These are our peers in another institution and I thought that they shouldn&#39;t be alone right now," Morris said.

Other campus organizations, including the Tucker Foundation, the Panhellenic Council and several Greek houses, provided funding and support.

"This event was really pulled together by an interesting network of Blitzing," Strack said. "In an hour, it was done."

At the ceremony, Strack and Morris read excerpts from an e-mail received from Julie Walters Steele of Virginia Tech&#39;s Unions and Student Activities office, thanking Dartmouth for its support.

Following a brief moment of silence, the Ladies of Logos, an a cappella group comprised of members of the Gospel Choir, sang to the crowd.

"I&#39;m really proud of Dartmouth," RuDee Lipscomb &#39;08, a member of the Ladies of Logos, said. "[This event] restores your faith in the College."

After the event, students were invited to sign several large cards which will remain in Collis during the day tomorrow, and then be sent to Virginia Tech on Wednesday.

Dean of the College Dan Nelson characterized the administration&#39;s reaction to the event as "one of profound sorrow and shock."

"It&#39;s hard to imagine how any community deals with such a shocking, senseless, awful tragedy," Nelson said.

Though he emphasized Dartmouth&#39;s safety, Nelson said that no campus can consider itself resistant to all violence.

"We&#39;ve all learned in reading newspapers and watching the news over the years that disturbed people can do senseless tragic things everywhere," Nelson said. "This is a relatively safe community, but in our lives none of us are ultimately absolutely protected or immune from something like that."

Hanover Police Chief Nicholas Giaccone agreed that the event shows that there exists the potential for violence in any community.

Giaccone said that the Hanover Police Department&#39;s officers are prepared to respond to events like those that occurred at Virginia Tech on Monday.

"Our officers are trained and are equipped to handle a dynamic event when it first starts," Giaccone said. "Although we have access to a SWAT team, putting a SWAT team in operation would be at least an hour&#39;s wait, so the officers that are on duty have to handle the situation, and go where the shots are being heard and try to neutralize it."

Giaccone did note one potential obstacle in the Police Department&#39;s response to an emergency.

"The College for whatever reason refuses to give police access to the dorms, so if the situation should arise on campus the police may be a little hamstrung in getting in and out of dorms should a situation like that occur."

New Hampshire, Giaccone said, has relatively lax gun laws as a result of a strong gun lobby. It is legal in New Hampshire, for example, to carry an exposed firearm, as long as the carrier does not have a felony record. Students wishing to have a gun at Dartmouth are required to store it with Safety and Security.

College Proctor and Director of Safety and Security Harry Kinne was unavailable for comment by press time.

Throughout the day on Monday, students, faculty, and staff sought to share updates and information about the tragedy.

E-mail with news updates circulated around many Greek houses, as well as among other campus organizations.

Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority president Abby Reed &#39;08 said that members of her sorority sent out e-mails with updates throughout the day. Members were also encouraged to attend Monday&#39;s vigil.

"It obviously came as a big shock," Reed said. "It makes us aware of the dangers that go on at all college campuses, even though we all feel really safe here."

Many students were impacted by the parallels between Dartmouth and Virginia Tech.

"I&#39;ve never cried watching the news before," Kelly McLaughlin &#39;07 said. "It sounded so much like it could happen here in a way."

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Original Source: <a href=http://thedartmouth.com/2007/04/17/news/virginia/> The Dartmouth - April 17, 2007</a>

Reprinted with the permission of The Dartmouth

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Allie Lowe

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2007-07-11

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Sara Hood

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"Edward D. Kalletta III" <publisher@thedartmouth.com>

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Vigil for VT at Vanderbilt

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Vigil draws mourners for Va. Tech tragedy

A memorial and candlelight service for the students and faculty slain or inured during the April 16 shooting at Virginia Tech was held April 18 at Benton Chapel. Pictured (l-r) are Virginia Tech Alumna Kathy Boyer and Vanderbilt&#39;s Presbyterian campus minister Jennifer Fouse. The event was sponsored by the Middle Tennessee Chapter of the Virginia Tech Alumni Association.

Donations for the families of those affected by the tragedy may be made to the Virginia Tech Foundation, University Development, 902 Prices Fork Road (0336), Blacksburg, VA 24061.

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32 killed in Virginia Tech massacre

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<i>200 miles away, Duke students hold vigil, admins offer support</i>

By: Anna Lieth
Posted: 4/17/07

After violent shootings shook students and administrators on Virginia Tech&#39;s campus Monday, members of the Duke community gathered last night to mourn and come to terms with the tragic events of the day.

Just 200 miles southeast of Virginia Tech&#39;s home in Blacksburg, Va., Duke students said the news sent a shock wave through the campus. For some, the shock was followed by fear for friends and loved ones in Virginia, but for others fear was displaced by disbelief and worry that a similar event could take place at the campus they call home.

And for one group of students, the natural response to the news was to pray. About 30 students gathered on the steps of the Duke Chapel for an emotional vigil and prayer session for the victims of the shooting, their respective families and the gunman Monday night.

"[The vigil is] not just to console people, but also to know that there is a community that is here to support people and that as a community we need to act together," said sophomore Ashley Dunfee, who attended the event. "We have a root that we act from and that ultimately should be the source of what we do and where we&#39;re going."

President Richard Brodhead, in a statement released to The Chronicle, recognized the magnitude of the events at Virginia Tech and emphasized efforts the University is making to reach out to members of both the Virginia Tech and Duke communities who were affected by the tragedy.

"This is the deadliest campus shooting in United States history and a profoundly sad day for everyone directly affected-and the nation as a whole," Brodhead said. "On behalf of the entire Duke community, I express my condolences to those who are grieving at Virginia Tech. They are enduring a time of unspeakable loss this evening."

John Burness, senior vice president for government affairs and public relations, said Brodhead also reached out following news of the event to Charles Steger, Virginia Tech&#39;s president, to offer his sympathies.

Brodhead said the University is working to provide support for students on Duke&#39;s campus who have been personally affected.

"Student Affairs is in the process of trying to identify every Duke student with Virginia Tech connections and to make personal contact and to offer counseling," he said. "Our Religious Life staff is also available for counseling and the Duke Chapel will be open as always for those who wish to seek a quiet place to reflect."

The Duke Chapel and the Duke Religious Life staff have organized an interfaith prayer vigil to be held on the Chapel steps at 2 p.m. today.

"This vigil is a small gesture at being in solidarity with those in Blacksburg," Craig Kocher, assistant dean of the Chapel and director of religious life, wrote in an e-mail to the student body last night.

Kocher said the vigil will include a time of silence followed by prayer and a bell toll for each person who died yesterday and will conclude with an open session for students to speak about the experience. Virginia Tech will be hosting a similar event on its campus simultaneously, Kocher said.

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Tragedy hits close to home

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<b>Campus comes together to mourn victims of shooting</b>

By Cornelia Hall
Princetonian Staff Writer

Photo by Gabriela Aoun

Students gathered in Richardson Auditorium last night for a service in memory of the victims of Monday&#39;s shootings at Virginia Tech. With solemn faces, some stained with tears, they listened to musical performances, prayers and speeches.

Associate Dean of Religion Life Deborah Blanks took the podium first, addressing the assembled students with deliberate, heartfelt remarks. She emphasized the renewed interconnectedness of the student body, calling the Princeton community "united in heart, spirit and solidarity."

"We dare to affirm that there is strength in community," she said.

In addition to the sense of unity on Princeton&#39;s campus, Blanks spoke of its tie to all academic institutions. "When tragedy touches one life, its universal reach reminds us of the fragility and the vulnerability of all life," she noted. She closed her remarks with a prayer.

USG president Rob Biederman &#39;08 also stressed the transcendence of the college experience, bringing the events at Virginia Tech closer to the Princeton campus. He spoke solemnly as the audience kept their gazes fixed on the podium.

"Every college campus should be a place apart; I imagine Princeton and Virginia Tech are no different in this regard," he told the gathering. "Here at Princeton, some casually refer to this as the Orange Bubble. At Virginia Tech yesterday, the bubble was ruptured, and we felt the shocks of that rupture here."

Monday&#39;s gunshots reverberated across the country, with President Bush seeking to console an appalled America and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) offering a moment of silence on the House floor.

"Those whose lives were taken did nothing to deserve their fate," Bush said at a memorial held at the Virginia Tech campus yesterday. "They were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. Now they&#39;re gone, and they leave behind grieving families and grieving classmates and a grieving nation."

One reason why Princeton felt the repercussions of the tragedy, Biederman said, is the similarity of all students&#39; campus experiences. "As college students, we can feel for their tragedy because we too know the sense of safety and security they felt that morning. We must give our thoughts and prayers to them because we are the same."

For some, the tragedy hit especially close to home. Misan Ikomi &#39;08, from Leesburg, Va., said about a third of her high school class attends Virginia Tech. After Monday&#39;s violence, she contacted a close friend to check in on her and was assured of her safety. "She said it&#39;s been pure chaos, like being in a movie and not really understanding what&#39;s happened," Ikomi said.

Jeff Hall &#39;08 has a brother who attends Virginia Tech. Hall reflected on the conversation he had after calling to make sure his brother was okay. "He didn&#39;t really talk about it too much," Hall said. "He was in a building nearby when it happened, and he saw people running out the door when it happened. I didn&#39;t really get much of a reaction from him."

"Even for those of us without friends or relatives in Blacksburg," Biederman said, "it&#39;s nearly impossible to feel unaffected by what has transpired," he said.

Students clapped sporadically during the service, seemingly unsure of the appropriate response to the speeches. Applause was subdued and brief.

The speakers also offered a sense of optimism, encouraging students to look toward the future in evaluating how they go about their daily lives.

President Tilghman was traveling and could not attend the service, but Vice President for Campus Life Janet Dickerson, Provost Christopher Eisgruber &#39;83 and several officials from Public Safety were in attendance.

At an Episcopalian memorial service in the University Chapel earlier yesterday afternoon, Princeton community members remembered the victims of Monday&#39;s attacks while searching for higher meaning through religion.

"I would hope that this would be an opportunity to develop habits of prayer and ongoing awareness of the transient nature of life and what that means for us in terms of our relationships, with one another and with God," Rev. Stephen White, an Episcopal chaplain, said after the service.

Eisgruber offered similar advice at the memorial. "Take the time to honor and value your own life and the lives of the people around you," he said.

Biederman suggested the University community address the issue of personal safety not with increased security but with increased trust.

"We should work daily to deepen and strengthen the bonds that make the college experience so special," Biederman told the gathering. "We need to look out for each other."